1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to a handle(s) that is attached to or are a part of a flexible bag.
2. Description of Prior Art
Grocery stores and various other retail establishments commonly supply consumers with a flexible bag to hold and carry produce and other purchases. The handles for these flexible bags that have handles are normally a simple loop consisting of the same material from which the bag itself is constructed.
The design of this loop handle provides adequate strength to support the contents of the bag, but it does not ensure adequate distribution of the weight of the bag's contents over the surface area of the user's fingers or other appendage used to support the bag's handle(s). As the weight of the contents of the bag increases, the loop handle tends to collapse to a very narrow band that represents essentially the actual material of the handle, but which is no longer in an uncollapsed or distributed state.
Previous devices have been developed to address bag handles with the intent of making these bags more comfortable and allowing the user thereby to carry more weight. However, these devices have had various shortcomings including added manufacturing cost which is a primary consideration. In these alternatives added components or materials are required to broaden the area of the handle over which the weight of the contents are distributed. These alternatives include:
U.S. Pat. No. 3,506,048, 16 Feb. 1968, to Jortikka of Finland describes handles made of plastic ribbon which is welded to the bag's plastic foil. The invention requires that the handles be formed from thin plastic tubing which, while still hot, is pressed flat so that the walls of the tubing adhere to each other. None of the benefits of added weight distribution and comfort are available if the walls of the tubing are welded flat.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,567,110, 3 Jun. 1968, to Susuki, Hoshi, Araki, Ohshita and Miyamoto of Japan where a thick piece of plate made of synthetic resin is bonded to the bag material. This provides a similar, but reduced carrying capacity since the plate molded into the handle would be inflexible and would not mold to the user's hand or other appendage. The plate design also adds manufacturing costs for the material as well as logistics costs related to the extra weight that the plate adds.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,854,732, 5 Dec. 1986, to Italici of Italy describes bag handles which contain "floatation elements" to make the bag unsinkable. This design requires added manufacturing costs and added weight related to the floatation elements. Since this design requires the use of a waterproof fabric, but not a fabric that is impermeable to a gas, it would not be possible to maintain a simple gas pocket within this handle.